


pretty little thing

by pearlshop



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Codependency, Dress Up, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Jealousy, Possessive Behavior, Protectiveness, Sexual Tension, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-27 16:53:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19795033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pearlshop/pseuds/pearlshop
Summary: Mike tries to get used to Eleven’s new style. He fails and succeeds, in stages.





	pretty little thing

**Author's Note:**

> This is meant to be a canon divergence of Season 3 where things continue as normal after the events of ST3. No death, malls collapsing, or impromptu moving.
> 
> *There's a realistic amount of sexuality in this, hence the mature rating. Mike and Eleven are hormonal teenagers and they have feelings about that.
> 
> *Mike and Eleven's relationship is NOT meant to be the model of a perfect relationship. They're codependent teenagers with trauma. All problematic elements are done on purpose.

The thing is, Mike knows El is the most beautiful girl in the world.

It’s not a question, even when she’s wearing Hop’s stained flannels and Mike’s old jeans. And she looks gorgeous in those, her cheeks flushed with laughter, hair mussed from rolling around in Mike’s basement.

Her hair definitely isn’t mussed today. It’s coifed and made perfect with hairspray, a bright yellow clip in her hair. An acid wash skirt just brushes the top of her thighs, and a paint splattered T-shirt hangs off her shoulder.

Mike sees more than a few boys give her a once over as they walk through the mall, and it makes him pull her towards him, jealously.

 _Pieces of shit_ , he thinks, sourly. All they see are long legs and a pretty face. Yeah, Mike sees them too, he’s not blind. But they don’t see how amazing she is.

El doesn’t notice the attention. She’s too close, tucked up against his side and clutching at his arm. It makes Mike’s chest tight with responsibility. When they’re with all their friends, she’s a star. But when it’s just them out in the world, she reverts back to how she was when they met. Clinging and always looking to him for reassurance.

Mike knows it’s not normal – he knows. He just can’t bring himself to care.

“Oh!” she exclaims suddenly, fingers tightening in his shirt. “I want that. Can I try it on, Mike?”

She’s pointing at a pink sundress hanging off of a mannequin at The Gap.

“Yeah, sure. You can try on whatever you want,” Mike says pointedly, Max’s words still fresh in his mind.

“What she wears is for her,” Max had yelled, “Not Hop, and definitely not you.”

_You can have whatever you want._

El smiles, pecking him on the cheek, before running into the store.

“Hey!” he yells, “Wait, El!”

Hop only has one condition on El going out in public: she can’t be alone.

Mike doesn’t have to wait long. El comes back in a moment, her arms piled high with clothes that she quickly passes to Mike. 

“All of it?”

El nods, a small smile on her face. 

Mike tries not to look too tired when they enter a huge queue of women, the only other guy in line also carrying a stack of women’s clothes. At least he isn’t the only one being dragged around by his girlfriend.

“How many items?” the sales woman asks. 

“A lot,” El says at the same time Mike says, “Fourteen.”

“Well, we have a limit of eight per person so if you could put a few aside -”

El ignores her, grabbing Mike’s other hand and pulling him towards the change room.

“Young lady! Only one person at a time -”

The door slams with a flick of her wrist.

“I should probably get out,” Mike says, nervously eyeing the door.

“No!” El snaps. Mike is horrified to note that there are tears in her eyes.

“Hey,” Mike drops the pile of clothes on the bench, sitting beside them just so he can look up at her. “It’s okay, El. I’m right here. And if I go, I’m just gonna be right outside.” 

El shakes her head, frustrated. Mike wipes one of the tears just starting to well up in her eyes.

“Before…Max,” she says, “Max came with me.”

She’s staring at him with wide wet eyes, like Mike should understand. And God, he’s trying.

“Max came with you…” he repeats, “because you were scared?”

El nods. 

“Because it was like before?”

Mike remembers the same face staring at him in his closet all those years ago, and fills in the blanks.

_Before Mike, before the party, before all of it._

“Then I’ll stay.” Like he could leave when she’s looking at him like that.

“Promise?” El asks, sweetly.

“Yeah, I promise.” Mike pulls her in for a kiss, his hands low on her hips and El’s resting on his neck. 

When she steps back, she immediately pulls her skirt to her ankles, kicking it off at her feet.

“Oh-kay,” Mike looks away, letting his eyes fall to some unspecific spot on the wall.

“Do you want me to turn around?” Mike knows that El isn’t as innocent anymore, but he still can’t help feeling like he’s stealing something from her, like the bare skin he can see from the corner of his eye isn’t for him. 

“No,” El says, “It’s okay.”

She wraps her arms around his neck, tugging his chin up.

“I want you to look at me.”

Then she turns around, wordlessly offering her unzipped dress. The soft curve of her waist and bra strap makes the breath catch in Mike’s throat.

“Mike?” El says, when he stares for a little too long.

“Sorry,” he says, zipping it up quickly. “All done.”

She twirls around, the pink pleats spreading around her.

“Do you like it?” she asks.

“I love it,” Mike says automatically.

“Mike!”

“What!? I do.” Mike loves everything El wears because he loves her.

“What do you like about it?” 

“Uh…” Mike flounders. “This is…pretty nice?” It comes out like a question when he bunches his hand in the pleats, pulling them up El’s thighs.

“You like…legs?” El says, confused.

“Yes,” Mike says, “I mean no! What I'm trying to say is...I like how your legs look in this dress.” His ears burn when he says it. Still, El beams at the compliment. Mike tells her she’s pretty and beautiful all the time, but getting him to say what exactly he likes is like pulling teeth.

It’s for El’s sake, and his. He doesn’t think his innocent girlfriend would appreciate why her long legs drive him crazy or why he has to spend longer in the bathroom when she decides to go braless. He’s sure Hop would appreciate it even less.

“I like how they look too,” El decides.

She twirls a few more times, before reaching for her hem and pulling it over her head.

“Mike,” she whines, wriggling to get it over her shoulders, “Help?”

Mike tries to ignore the sight of her nipples peaking through her thin bra as he tugs the dress up and over her shoulders.

* * *

It’s Dustin’s 15th birthday, and Steve is letting them use his pool.

“No snacks, no drinks and for the love of God, Henderson. If any of you vomit in that pool, you’ll all be cleaning it. For the next _year_.” Steve had lain down the law dramatically before giving Dustin the keys, but Mike knows it’s all bullshit.

Besides, he has bigger things to worry about than Steve. Like what he’s going to wear to his first pool party. His first pool party with _El_. It’s not like she’s never seen him shirtless before but there’s a difference between cuddling shirtless in the dark of El’s room, and his pale lanky chest practically glowing under the midday sun.

“I can honestly say, I have never had that problem,” Lucas had said, laughing when Mike hit him with a pillow. “But seriously, Mike? El is crazy about you. It’s not like she doesn’t know what you look like.”

So Mike decides against a T-shirt but for putting on his navy trunks and hiding in the pool until his girlfriend arrives.

“You’re gonna have to get out eventually,” Lucas teases from where he’s sitting in a pool chair, fiddling with Steve’s stereo.

“Eat me,” Mike says, ducking back into the water. He can still smell the hot dogs Dustin is cooking through the thick blanket of water.

When Mikes comes back up, Lucas whistles.

The girls are here and Max is wearing a new neon green bikini straight out of one of the modern catalogues at Starcourt. 

_But she’s not El._

“Mad Max,” Lucas says, giving her an appreciative once over. “You’re looking good.” 

Max rolls her eyes, but her cheeks are ruddy and Mike can tell she’s biting her cheek so she doesn’t smile. 

She says, “Shut up,” the same way she might say, “Tell me I’m pretty again.”

“Hey!” Dustin yells, grinning at her, “We’re matching.” Like anyone could miss his own neon green shorts.

“Great minds think alike,” Max says. She saunters over to the barbecue, stealing a skewer from Dustin and biting into the hot dog.

“You know that wasn’t done,” Dustin says. Max shrugs and continues to chew. 

“Where’s Will?” she asks, around a mouthful of food.

“He doesn’t like the water,” Lucas says, simply. He doesn’t need to elaborate on the _why_. 

“Max, where’s El?” Mike asks, impatiently.

“I’m here,” El’s quiet voice answers, appearing at the pool gate. 

She looks…breathtaking. It’s just a simple red suit but it shows off the curve of her hips and the swell of her chest. Mike drinks it all in, after he’s sure none of the others are staring too.

It takes his hormone laden head a minute to catch up and take in her sour face.

“I wanted to wear one too,” El says. It sounds like an apology. “A bee-kee-ni. But Hop said no.”

Mike is glad he did because he would have definitely embarrassed himself if she was wearing any less. 

“Is this still okay?” El asks, “Still pretty?”

Mike suddenly feels like the worst boyfriend in the world. Or at least the worst one at the party.

“Of course,” Max says, shaking her shoulder, “You look hot!”

El bites her lip, shrugging her shoulder like she doesn’t believe her. Max gives Mike crazy eyes over her head and he knows he has to fix this.

“Hey, El,” he says, patting the edge of the pool, “Come here.”

It cheers her up enough for the sadness to leave her face, but she doesn’t look happy. She slides her legs into the water, goose bumps rising at the temperature.

She might have superpowers but she still squeals when Mike pulls on her legs and drags her into the water.

“Mike!” she yells, “It’s cold!”

“It’s not too cold, if you hold on to me,” he laughs, hoisting her legs up around him. He likes it, carrying her like this. He couldn’t do it until recently and it makes him feel grown up and strong.

“Hi,” El giggles, when their foreheads are pressed together and they’re both practically cross eyed.

“Hi,” Mike replies, panting even though he’s freezing. He kisses the laughter from her mouth, only stopping when she’s breathless. 

“You look really good,” Mike says adamantly, “Super pretty.”

“But not hot?” she says, mimicking Max, “Not sexy?”

Mike blushes, despite the cold water. “I mean…yeah. You know you do.”

El pouts, obviously not believing him.

“I want you to say it,” she says. “But only if you believe it. If I’m not hot, you don’t have to lie.” Her voice trails off at the end and Mike’s shyness dissipates. The only thing stronger than his awkwardness is his desire to make El happy, always.

“El,” he says, hoisting her higher so she has to look down at him, “You’re the hottest girl in Hawkins. Probably the entire world. And I’m not lying, okay?” 

A small smile appears on El’s face that quickly devolves into giggling and God, Mike loves her.

“You are a bad liar,” she finally says.

“I am,” he says, remembering the stupid fight they got into earlier that summer.

El gives him a sweet peck before leaning back to push his wet hair back.

“You’re the hottest boy in Hawkins too,” El says, very seriously. “Even though you’re really cold.”

She’s learnt a lot over the last few months, but she still doesn’t totally understand slang.

 _Cute._

Mike kisses her deeper, pushing her against the side of the pool so she’s covered by his body this time. El squeaks in surprise before kissing him back, her body clinging to his like the water around them. 

“Hey guys,” Dustin calls out, “Steve didn’t say anything about having sex in the pool but I’m pretty sure that’s not allowed either.”

Mike can’t see, but he can feel El’s blush when she hides her face against his neck.

“Oh my God Dustin,” Mike yells, “ _Shut up_!”

* * *

It’s the last day of school before Christmas break when El is late.

“Where is she?” Mike asks Max. She looks more impish than usual and he can’t help but feel like it has something to do with his girlfriend.

Max shrugs, looking at him smugly.

“I don’t know Mike,” she says, popping the K, “I’m sure she’ll be here soon.”

“Yeah, relax,” Will says, biting into his sandwich, “Didn’t you just see her last night?” Mike rolls his eyes when Dustin and Lucas join in on the ribbing. He’d ditched their movie night because El had called him about a loud screeching coming from outside the cabin. It ended up being a racoon that Mike had to lead away with Eggos, because El didn’t want to hurt it.

“Whipped,” Lucas laughs, like he isn’t feeding Max Skittles.

“Screw you guys,” Mike says, looking around the cafeteria for his girlfriend. His eyes light up when he spots her crossing the room. She looks more ornate than usual, her lips painted and a smattering of necklaces hanging out of the neck of her coat. She’s not the only one, the majority of the girls wearing ugly Christmas sweaters or festive red accessories. 

“Mike!” she says, wrapping her arms around his neck and standing on her tip toes to kiss him. Mike is shocked at how cold she is.

“You’re freezing!” Mike says, running his hands down her arms and up her back. He kisses her forehead like that’ll give her some of his warmth.

“I know,” El says, but she grins toothily like she’s happy about it. She unzips her coat, and Mike suddenly realizes why.

“Oh wow,” Lucas says, before Max smacks the back of his head.

“Do you like it?” El asks sweetly.

Her coat isn’t unzipped all of the way, but he can see enough. Her small breasts are spilling out of the corset she’s wearing, the necklaces falling between them. The delicate straps barely cover her slender shoulders that are still shaking from the December air.

 _Am I dreaming?_

“Mike?” she asks, tilting her head to the side. 

He’s suddenly brought back to Earth. He’s not dreaming. He’s really standing in the cafeteria full of people with El wearing next to nothing.

He zips her coat back up to her chin before Dustin or Will can look over too.

“I…I…” he stutters, “ _We_ need to go.” 

He grabs El’s hand, pulling her through the cafeteria. The party calls after them but he can’t hear them over the sound of the blood rushing in his ears. Amongst other places.

“Mike, where are we going?” El asks. Mike doesn’t answer her until they’re outside and he’s got one foot on his bike pedal.

“Home,” he says. 

“But we have class?” El says, confused. 

“It’s the last day of school,” Mike says, for once frustrated with her naivety. “Nobody is gonna care if we’re missing.” 

“Hop said I’m not allowed to skip class,” El adds, “Ever.”

“El, you just can’t go to class dressed like that! Okay!?”

El stills when he raises his voice, stepping back with wide eyes.

Mike half expects her to throw him across the courtyard, but instead she just gets on his bike. She wraps her arms around his waist, tentative like she’s not sure how he’ll react. He hates it, El being cautious around him. He shrugs off her hands for a moment, just to unzip his own coat and put it over hers. The ride to the cabin is long, especially in the winter.

El’s slight body shivers against his back the entire time, even with her arms wrapped around his waist and his coat covering her. 

More than anything, he wishes he was sixteen. Then he could take her wherever she wants in a real car and she wouldn’t have to freeze half to death on his shitty bike. He speeds up as much as he can on the frost slick roads but it still takes them nearly half an hour.

As soon as his feet stop, El shrugs Mike’s coat off before opening the door with a bang and slamming it behind her.

“El!” Mike calls after her. He lets his bike fall to the ground before picking up his coat and following her. 

“Go away!” El yells, but her door opens with ease.

Mike breath catches in his throat when he sees her. He didn’t get a real look in the cafeteria, but he definitely does now.

She looks like she can’t decide between bursting into tears or screaming at him, but that doesn’t take away from how gorgeous she looks.

She keeps sniffling, her breasts heaving in the corset. It’s a dainty white lace that cups her chest and clings to her tiny waist. A strangely familiar belt that reads BOY TOY hangs off her waist, only held up by the curve of her hips and her chiffon skirt.

“Madonna,” El says, breaking Mike out of his reverie. “She wore this at the -”

“MTV awards…right.” Mike remembers being roped into watching it with El and Max, the two of them screaming lyrics the entire time.

He sighs and lets his head roll back until he’s staring at the ceiling. He tries to will his boner out of existence by thinking about Hopper, the Demogorgon – anything that isn’t his beautiful angry girlfriend in a lace corset.

When he looks back at her, she’s blinking back tears.

“I’ll take it off then, if you hate it that much.” Before Mike can move she’s ripping at it and failing because she’s so upset.

“El, El, _El_ ,” Mike says, trying to grab her hands, but she just shakes her head and then Mike feels an invisible force pushing him against the wall. He doesn’t let that deter him, grabbing at her hands a second time. He pulls her on to the bed and into his lap.

“Let me go!” El yells.

“No, not until you let me explain!” Mike says. El falters at that, her body stilling until she’s just sniffling and staring at their joint hands in her lap. 

“El,” Mike says, rubbing his thumb along the back of her hand, “I don’t hate it. Trust me, that’s…definitely not the problem.”

“Then why did you yell at me?” El asks. The question is so innocent; the guilt he feels for yelling at her weighs on his chest like an anchor.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that,” Mike says. He ducks down to kiss her, holding her face in his hands like she’s made of glass. He kisses her once, and then twice, until he can taste El’s tears and they’re both panting into each other’s mouths. Mike wants to press her down on to the bed and kiss her, but he wants something else more.

“Forgive me?”

El leans back to look at him and her eyes are still wet.

“You were mean to me.” Her lip wobbles when she adds, “ _Bad_.”

“I know, I know,” Mike says, and then his voice starts to shake because he knows how seriously El takes that word.

_Bad men._

El frowns, reaching up to wipe at the corner of his eyes. She obviously hates seeing him cry as much as he hates seeing her cry.

“I just went crazy,” Mike says, the words coming out in a rush, trying to make her understand. “Seeing you like this at school.”

“At school.” El repeats, slowly. “Wearing this at school is bad?”

“Yes…I mean no! You should wear whatever you want,” Mike says, “You’re allowed to wear whatever you want.” He clarifies. 

“But lingerie is like…” he trails off, “Private.”

“Privacy,” El rolls the word around on her tongue. She still struggles with virtues like privacy and modesty. She knows enough to only take her clothes off behind a closed door or with Mike, but forgets the rest. 

“But Madonna wore it,” El says, “ _Outside_.”

Mike wants to explain to her that Madonna is a celebrity and not a normal person like them but El cuts him off. “And I don’t want to be private,” El says, poking his chest, “I wanted to show this to you.” She pokes him again, making him wince. 

“It makes me feel pretty and I thought you’d think so too.” She sounds disappointed now, like Mike doesn’t think she’s the prettiest girl in the world.

“I do, that’s the problem!” Mike says, “I don't want anyone else to see you like this.”

“Why?” El says, her brow furrowing. 

Mike runs a hand over his face, willing himself to be patient.

“You said you wanted to show it to me right? Just me.”

El nods slowly.

“That’s why it made me jealous. I don’t want other people looking at you. Especially when it’s something private that you just want to show me.” 

“Jealous?” El perks up. Mike’s ears redden at how excited she looks. It’s one of the few words she knows since it’s a common plot on the trashy soaps she loves.

“Yeah,” Mike tries to shrug it off, “Like…how you felt when you saw Max and I.” El told him about the incident over the summer, and then later to Max so she could apologize.

“Oh,” El frowns, subdued. She leans in before nuzzling her nose against Mike’s cold cheek. 

“I forgive you,” she says, and the tension in Mike’s shoulders disappears. “I won’t wear private things outside anymore.”

“You shouldn’t wear them inside either,” Mike jokes, “I think if Hop saw you he’d have a heart attack. How did you even buy this?”

“Max,” El says, “It was her Christmas present.” 

“Of course.” Mike bites back a comment about how Max is corrupting her. They just made up and he knows it’s not entirely true. Max might encourage her, but everything El does is because she wants to.

El gets off his lap to fiddle with her radio.

“What are you doing?” Mike asks, leaning back so he can stare at El bouncing on the balls of her feet. 

“Showing you,” El says with a grin. When Madonna’s _Like A Virgin_ starts playing, she sits back in his lap. Her shy fingers play with the collar of his shirt, so at odds with the daring outfit she’s wearing.

“Do you like it?” she asks, repeating her words from the cafeteria.

Without the prying eyes of their friends and their classmates, Mike shows her just how much he does.

**Author's Note:**

> [*El was imitating Madonna's iconic outfit from the 1984 MTV VMA's.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkSxhG4cbPo) The outfit is relatively tame by 2019 standards but was revealing for the times and obviously crazy inappropriate for a 14 year old from small town Indiana in 1985. The narrative is NOT trying to slut shame anybody, I'm only trying to reflect period-typical attitudes.
> 
> If you enjoyed this please leave a comment or a kudos! It's the only way authors know their work is being read and it motivates us to write more. 
> 
> You can also reach me @pearlshop on Tumblr.


End file.
